Kingscrowd Podcast

Sam Fiske, Kingscrowd
  • 5.0 (2)
  • BUSINESS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Kingscrowd Podcast is your go-to weekly show for all things online private markets. Hosted by serial investor and Kingscrowd VP of Product Brian Belley and retail private markets insider Scott Kitun, the show features the latest news, analysis, and insights from the fast-growing world of equity crowdfunding and retail private equity — with expert commentary from Kingscrowd analysts Léa Bouhelier-Gautreau and Teddy Lyons.

  1. 22M AGO

    Retail vs VC: How to Think About Follow-On Investing

    This week on the Kingscrowd Podcast, Teddy, Scott, and Léa break down one of the most important — and often overlooked — questions in startup investing: when should you follow on? Using Pirouette Pharma as a case study, the team explains why Kingscrowd Capital is reinvesting and what milestones matter most when deciding to double down. The conversation explores how retail investors should think differently than institutional VCs, what progress signals real execution, why pro rata participation from prior investors matters, and how valuation discipline plays into blended returns. If you’ve ever wondered whether to invest again in a company you already backed, this episode gives you the framework.

    18 min

  2. FEB 18

    Hylio Deal Review: Drones, Defense, and the Future of Farming

    Brian begins by summarizing Kingscrowd’s product roadmap updates, including enhanced site-wide search functionality (1:26–2:33), renewed discussion of the Profitability Fund (2:50–3:13), and new capabilities within Kingscrowd Pro such as advanced filtering, client tracking, and API access (3:51–4:32). The discussion then transitions to Hylio (4:49–6:10), a precision agriculture drone company replacing tractors with targeted aerial spraying systems. Léa explains Hylio’s recent revenue results and how a factory transition temporarily slowed reported growth despite continued demand (7:06–8:29). Brian and Teddy weigh in on the realities of hardware startups, including supply chain complexity and capital intensity (8:59–11:00), while emphasizing Hylio’s prior profitability as a positive de-risking factor (11:30–12:03). The team contrasts Hylio’s chemical-efficiency model with Greenfield Robotics’ chemical-elimination thesis (12:03–13:46). Léa then highlights Hylio’s regulatory progress and its upcoming autonomous launchpad system (“Arcra”), which could eliminate the need for on-site operators pending FAA approval (14:41–16:28). The conversation also covers Hylio’s entry into defense through its U.S.-manufactured Photon drone (17:34–18:30). The episode closes with a key consideration for investors: adoption risk among farmers and behavioral inertia around switching from tractors to drones (20:46–21:30), balanced by growing health and environmental awareness in agriculture (22:19–23:15).

    24 min

  3. FEB 10

    Our Bond Goes Public: What a Direct Listing Means for Crowdfunding Investors

    Our Bond (TG-17 Inc., OBAI) has gone public via a direct listing (0:00–1:15), and Brian and Léa explain what’s happening and what investors need to do next. Léa starts with a clear refresher on what Our Bond is and how the product works in real life (1:17–3:49), including adoption and enterprise customers that make it more than a typical consumer app (4:12–5:33). She also outlines why Kingscrowd Capital liked the opportunity—product differentiation, growth/valuation context, and the founder’s prior exits (4:53–6:02). Brian then pulls up key deal context and the path from prior fundraising to today’s public-market moment (6:08–8:16), before they shift into the how-to for investors: check your inbox for transfer-agent instructions, understand that shares are typically held in your name via DRS, and that you may need to transfer to a broker to trade (8:16–9:11, 12:53–13:34). They also discuss how fees can hit smaller investors disproportionately and why this is an “industry infrastructure” issue founders should think about early (9:11–15:22). Finally, they explain IPO vs direct listing—including why direct listings don’t issue new shares immediately (18:43–20:30)—and why early price action can be misleading when float is limited and many shareholders can’t trade yet (15:52–17:57). They close with a founder takeaway: communicate early and clearly, and reduce friction wherever possible to protect investor trust (21:50–22:34, 22:57–23:52).

    25 min

  4. FEB 3

    From ‘Grow at All Costs’ to Profits: A New Fund for 2026

    Profit beats “power law” this week as Brian Belley and Teddy Lyons unveil the Kingscrowd Capital Profitability Fund—built to target venture-like returns with materially lower risk. 00:17 intro & announcement; 01:26 thesis overview; 01:48 why power law hurts most investors; 02:36 targeting profitable private companies; 03:01 strict screen (2 yrs positive NI, ≥$1M rev, YoY growth, rev multiple ≤7.5x, 3.0+ KC rating, 5-yr exit path); 03:31 portfolio design (25 companies, concentrated, equal/pro-rata); 04:20 case study: LMNT growth & margins; 06:05 case study: ConsumerDirect’s valuation step-up; 07:03 current pipeline examples; 07:51 return target (3–5x fund) & risk profile; 08:15 fund size & LP-friendly fees (≈1% mgmt, 5% carry); 09:05 webinar details & how this complements Fund I.

    20 min

  5. JAN 27

    Reading Between the Lines: StartEngine’s Latest Filing

    (00:00) Brian tees up a StartEngine deep dive and notes Kingscrowd own raise on StartEngine. (01:28) Teddy frames the Reg A+ at a ~$2B valuation and walks through 2024–2025 revenue, highlighting how ~82% YTD comes from StartEngine Private. (03:03) He explains the SPV model (buy secondaries, mark up ~25%, sell into a fund) and why GAAP records gross sales as “revenue” while the true economics are the spread. (06:13) Scott zooms out: secondaries fueled 2025, but that pace may be cyclical; the core portal model struggles without scale, pushing platforms toward private, services, and consolidation. (11:48) The team reviews line-item revenues and market data: fewer new Reg CF offerings but higher average dollars; Reg A+ accelerating. (24:15) Looking ahead: success hinges on bigger, better issuers, clearer settlement/transfer, and investor-friendly valuations. (31:40) Diligence takeaway—read filings closely; watch how “revenue” is defined. (32:51) Wrap and reminder about kingscrowd’s StartEngine offering.

    33 min

  6. JAN 13

    From the Data: What Drove $900M+ Online in 2025 and a Fresh Look at BabyQuip

    Brian, Scott, and Léa unpack the 2025 funding rebound across the online private markets—highlighting Reg A+’s triple-digit YoY growth, steadier Reg CF dollars despite fewer offerings, and how security mix is shifting (more preferred equity, more debt). Then Léa leads a deal review of BabyQuip: revenue progression (~$3.4M FY22 → ~$6M FY24), burn reduction, peak-season cash-flow positives, new “GoQuip” expansion, and partnership-led distribution—while raising again at roughly the same share price as ~2.5 years ago. (Not investment advice.) Chapters 00:00 – Welcome & agenda: 2025 recap + BabyQuip deal review 01:00 – Headline stats: ~$380M Reg CF, ~$547M Reg A+, >$900M combined 02:30 – Reg A+ up ~124% YoY; Reg CF up ~11% YoY despite fewer offerings 04:10 – Quality over quantity: CF offerings down ~28–30% (~1,000 deals) 06:00 – Security mix: preferred equity hits a high; debt/rev-share keep rising 08:00 – Platform behavior & the “fewer, bigger, better” issuer trend 10:20 – What the 2026 IPO climate could mean for A+ pipelines 12:00 – Introducing the deal: BabyQuip overview (marketplace dynamics) 13:00 – Growth: ~$3.4M (FY22) → ~$6M (FY24), aiming ~+$15% YoY 14:00 – Same share price as ~2.5 years ago: what that implies 15:00 – Unit economics & seasonality; peak months cash-flow positive 16:00 – Burn down: ~$2.6M (’24) → ~$1M (’25) 17:00 – Distribution: partnership placements with a major travel site; more in pipeline 18:00 – GoQuip expansion: beyond baby gear (mobility, beach, bulky travel items) 19:00 – Network effects & competition in two-sided marketplaces 20:00 – Founder lens: marketplace experience & execution discipline 22:00 – Final thoughts, reminders, and Kingscrowd raise/webinar info

    25 min

  7. JAN 6

    2026 Kickoff: 2025 Recap, Bold Predictions, and the Future of the Retail Private Markets

    Happy 2026! Brian, Scott, and Teddy recap a stronger-than-expected 2025 for online private markets (near ~$902M, strongest since 2021), then outline the 2026 playbook: Reg A momentum, platforms shifting to broker-dealers and solicitation, secondaries/tokenization blurring public and private, and SEC leadership changes that may accelerate capital formation. We dig into the quality uptick from VC-backed CF rounds, how AI will compress build costs and reshape B2B, where risks live (SaaS churn, infra overbuild), and which sectors look compelling (defense, energy). Plus: Kingscrowd Pro launches for industry users, and our Reg CF raise is live on StartEngine. 00:00 – Intro, goals for 2026 01:17 – 2025 recap: funding near ~$902M; Reg A leads 03:41 – Kingscrowd Pro launch + Kingscrowd raise on StartEngine 05:59 – Infra shift: broker-dealers, solicitation, scale 08:04 – Tokenization & secondaries: liquidity and the public/private blur 11:58 – VC-backed CF deals rising; quality & signaling 13:50 – SEC/commission changes & policy backdrop 16:05 – Platforms’ revenue mix pivoting to private/secondaries 18:30 – AI in 2026: breakthroughs, modeling, cost curves 22:40 – Risks ahead: B2B SaaS churn; infra “clean-up”; IPO mechanics 27:12 – Sectors to watch: defense, energy 30:03 – What this means for founders & investors 33:40 – Wrap + 2025 Funding Report next week

    36 min

  8. 12/22/2025

    SpaceX IPO Math, Wefunder Allocation Drama, and Crowdfunding IPO Realities

    Check out Kingscrowd's crowdfunding campaign.  Brian and Scott kick off with headlines—Invest Act passes the House and Kingscrowd’s StartEngine raise goes live (00:00–00:48), then dig into SpaceX’s $1.5T IPO talk and how pre-IPO targets anchor secondary pricing, complete with SPV stack/fee pitfalls (00:48–06:13). They contrast retail vs. institutional behavior around secondaries and hype cycles (06:13–12:53), before bringing in Teddy to dissect AppTerra’s listing: split math, day-one volatility, and transfer-agent delays that disadvantage crowdfunded holders (12:53–18:16). They close on what needs fixing (pre-IPO transfer readiness, better float/volume) and practical takeaways for retail navigating secondaries and IPOs (18:16–21:19), plus final wrap and what to watch next (21:19–end).

    23 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Kingscrowd Podcast is your go-to weekly show for all things online private markets. Hosted by serial investor and Kingscrowd VP of Product Brian Belley and retail private markets insider Scott Kitun, the show features the latest news, analysis, and insights from the fast-growing world of equity crowdfunding and retail private equity — with expert commentary from Kingscrowd analysts Léa Bouhelier-Gautreau and Teddy Lyons.

Information

  • Creator
    Sam Fiske, Kingscrowd
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    60
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    Kingscrowd Podcast

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